Date: Fri, 28 May 2010 10:41:28 -0500
From: Jason Gordon
Subject: Things that Go Bump 26
Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction, which will include t/t and
m/m relationships, and probably some sex too. If it is illegal in your
area to read this, or if you are not old enough to read this (you know who
you are), stop here. Otherwise, please enjoy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is a companion story to "A Light in the
Darkness." The story lines are related and the characters occasionally
interact, and the frequency of this will be increasing. My sincerest thanks
go out to Tarton, who kindly edited this chapter. And thanks to everyone
for writing such encouraging emails.
I am now posting my stories to a Yahoo!Group,
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jaygordon_1981/ as well. I'm putting them up
there a little in advance so I can make final edits before submitting to
Nifty, so if you are interested, you can check it out. It's membership
requires permission to avoid spam and flames, so just let me know!
Things That Go Bump, Chapter 26
"The Council Strikes Back, Part 2"
In Bangkok, Sebastian walked up to the front gate of Sammael's safe
house and rang the bell. A young man peaked out a little window and his
eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't have time to react before Sebastian
unleashed an incredible force which blew the door in, tearing the metal
doorframe from the wall and crushing the man behind the door.
Simultaneously, black-clad commandos burst through every door and window on
the building, which was filled with screams and small explosions of stun
grenades and magick. Most of the agents present were low-level, but the
man in charge was a little Korean woman Sebastian recognized as one of
Chang's governors.
As chaos reigned in the upper floors, Sebastian closed on her with
fury in his eyes. "Traitor!"
Anger flickered in her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by fear
when she saw the look on his face, saw his hand rise and turn as if he was
reaching for her neck. And she felt the pressure as surely as if he was
wrapping his fingers around her neck. Only too late did she realize that
her feet weren't on the ground.
James followed Lt. Spencer into a high window off of an alley and
they slipped into what appeared to be an empty office. Spencer stuck his
head out carefully into an empty hall. Soon they were signaled all-clear.
They all met in the hall and Christen whispered, "Something's wrong....
This place is empty and has been for a while...."
Captain Morgan motioned down at the floor, indicating he felt that
there were subterranean spaces. And it made sense. An abandoned building
would provide plenty of cover. Seers were dispatched to try to detect
passageways and openings to unseen dwellings. This did not bode well, as
it meant that their entrance would have already been announced to those
below, and there was no doubt that the facility's defenses had been
activated. It also meant that this facility was far more advanced, and
important, than they had realized, so their defense assessment was, no
doubt, flawed. Compounding this difficulty, it took a few more minutes to
find the entrance, a secret stairway behind a bookcase.
Three pairs of commandos preceded James and Spencer into the
stairwell, and within moments, the floor began shaking with little
explosions of force and energy. As quickly as they could, the commandos
poured into the lower level and began neutralizing the opposition, which
was surprisingly heavy. James and Spencer alternated their attacks and
pinned down a few of the defenders while a second team circled slightly to
the left and took them out. It took about ten minutes to clear the landing
and get the whole force downstairs.
The underground facility was massive, clearly more than they were
bargaining for, but there would be no additional backup available until the
simultaneous assaults began to wrap up, so they made a conservative plan to
sweep the facility wing by wing, covering their rear as best they could.
Quick hand gestures assigned each team a room to clear on the first
hallway, and as James and Spencer opened their door they paused in shock as
two surprised faces looked over at them, hesitating for a moment.
James was shocked to find Peter staring back at him, while Spencer
was terrified by the sight of Sekhmet, who was still recovering from her
encounter with Sebastian. Because she was not well, James was a second
faster in bringing up his angelic shield than Sekhmet was at casting the
powerful energy ball in their direction. The blast was so powerful that it
shock wave blasted back to knock Sekhmet and Peter off their feet, giving
James and Lt. Spencer a chance to get out of the doorway.
"Sekhmet," James called to Christen, whose eyes widened.
"Set your charges for 2 minutes and retreat," she called out to her
men. "MOVE!"
Each team had a small C4 device, which they sat haphazardly on
load-bearing walls and at the mouths of various hallways, before beginning
a hasty retreat to the stairwell. Christen was covering their retreat
herself, but James wouldn't leave her behind and Spencer stuck with him.
When the last man passed them, Christen dropped her shield and the three
started running. "You shouldn't have waited," she scolded.
But just then, Sekhmet's cry of rage halted them, and James turned
to face her again, lifting his amulet in her direction and modifying the
shield spell to create a wall blocking the exit behind them, blocking the
ancient vampire in. Christen grabbed his arm and dragged him, but James
saw Peter come running up behind Sekhmet and stopped again. He looked like
he would run back through the shield for a moment, but Lt. Spencer grabbed
his other arm and, with Christen's help, practically dragged him upstairs.
Together they could not have moved him, but Christen whispered, "Think of
Sebastian," and he allowed himself to be moved.
The three of them barely made it back to their rendezvous point
before the bombs leveled the building and collapsed it into the underground
complex, which would, with any luck, also flood quickly, given the Venetian
water table. Christen and Lt. Spencer looked at each other, knowing they
were missing something, something bid, but they quietly helped James back
to their complex. "Take an hour and relax," Christen called, and motioned
to Spencer that he shouldn't leave James alone.
The man jogged to catch up with James and put a hand on his
shoulder. "What happened back there?" the soldier asked him. James shook
his head, pulling his arm away and walking faster. "James! Come on,
man...."
James stopped but didn't turn around. "You know who Sekhmet is?
What she is?"
"I've been briefed.... Ancient vampire bitch, used to play goddess
in Egypt?"
James chuckled heavily, his shoulders heaving. "That about says it
all.... Sebastian ... when he sleeps ... if he dreams, she's in his
nightmares.... And the boy, the boy with her.... He was my best
friend...."
Spencer stepped around him and saw that he was crying. "What
happened?" Spencer asked. James sat down and they closed the door, and he
told the man everything. How he had met Sebastian and how they had fallen
instantly into this strange relationship, how everything had been going so
well until Sammael and how Peter had been ... destroyed inside.... "And
you blame yourself?"
James nodded and put his face in his hands. "How could I not? If
I'd never brought him into all this, if I'd let them think I was dead....
And then again, if I'd noticed how bad things had gotten when he came back
to us, I could have.... I guess that's at least part of the reason why
I've been wanting so bad to fight! I'd like to punish someone besides
myself.... Now it looks like I helped kill him...."
Spencer looked at him and said gloomily, "I doubt we got
Sekhmet.... You don't get to be that old by getting caught by
technology.... I'm guessing she took him with her, especially after your
reaction to him...."
"Thanks," James said with a meager laugh, rolling his eyes, "for
trying to make me feel better...."
"Sometimes what we want isn't for the best," Spencer said with a
softening smile.
"Ain't that the truth," James groaned, laying back on the bed and
staring at the ceiling. Spencer shook his head and lay back on an empty
bunk and caught a quick nap for himself.
Sebastian and his men were among the first to return, and he went
straight to his terminal, sending the little video he had taped to the
boxes of every Council member and associate. He could send a message too,
he fumed to himself. Then he checked to find that only Christen's group
had returned -- faster than he had expected.
He called her up and found her looking tired. "What happened?" he
demanded.
"Fine, how are you," she said with a wry smile. "Oh, our
intelligence underestimated the target. It was a huge underground facility
and when we got down into it, who do we run into but Sekhmet herself...."
"I'll be there in a minute," he said, not giving her time to say
anything before turning off his computer and conjuring up a portal that
opened into her office. "Is he okay?" he asked as he stepped into her
office.
She smiled and nodded. "He's FINE! Resting! He and his teammate
Lt. Spencer walked in on Sekhmet and a boy, and he was quick enough with
that super-shield.... In fact, he sealed the exit behind us and we blew
the place to hell, but I thought he was going to try to face off with her
when he saw that boy again...."
"What did he look like?" Sebastian asked.
"Not his type," the woman answered, misunderstanding the question.
Then she described the boy and Sebastian frowned.
"Peter," he muttered, shaking his head.
"The Lively boy? The one who was abused and turned?" she asked.
He nodded. "And the one who turned traitor and gave Sammael
Resheph's fangs...."
"How did James handle that?" Christen responded.
"He didn't.... He withdrew at first and just went about life as
normal.... Then he got real keen on kicking ass.... Sheesh.... Let me
see him?"
"Of course," Christen said, and pointed him to the barracks she'd
seen James and Spencer enter.
Sebastian entered and Spencer stirred, hopping off his cot and
standing at attention. "Sir," he barked, but quietly, making Sebastian
smile at his thoughtfulness.
"At ease," he said with a wave and a laugh. "You must be
Lt. Spencer?"
"Yes, sir," Spencer said, somewhat stiffly, to a boy who looked
five or six years his junior. Looks were of course very deceiving.
"How did James do in the heat of things, lieutenant?" Sebastian
asked softly, motioning for the young man to sit and taking a seat next to
him on the cot so he could watch James sleep.
"Saved my ass, stayed behind to cover Consul Wheeler.... Brave....
I thought we were going to have trouble over that Peter boy," he added.
Sebastian raised his eyebrows. "He talked to you about that?"
Spencer shrugged and said, "I guess we got close.... After I
challenged him to a duel and he kicked my ass, we got over some things...."
Sebastian's smile was luminous, distracting Spencer from the mist
in his eyes. "That sounds about right.... Thank you for watching his
back...."
"Thank you for trusting us," Spencer nodded and laughed, getting up
to walk away. "I believe I have other matters," he added, clearly leaving
so Sebastian could be alone with James.
When the young man slipped out, he moved quietly to the edge of
James's cot and laid down next to him, spooning into the muscular teen and
wrapping an arm around him. "Mmmm," James said. "I love you...."
"How did you know I wasn't Spencer?" Sebastian asked with a laugh.
"Spencer's too big to slide in behind me like that.... Anyway, I'm
pretty sure he's straight.... But I know the feel of your body," James
said as he yawned.
"I heard you did well today," Sebastian said as he squeezed James.
"I managed to hold of Sekhmet until we could get out.... I'm
guessing she got away before the explosion though...."
"Much older vampires than you have been killed by her without the
least trouble.... That's a good day.... She ... probably took Peter with
her...." Sebastian felt James tense up as he said it, felt the breath
catch in the big boy's chest.
James coughed. "We'll see.... If she took him its only because he
can hurt us.... I should have killed him...."
"Oh baby," Sebastian said softly, kissing him on the back of the
neck.
"Part of me wanted to kill him for what he's done," James admitted
tearfully.
"But that's not why you tried to go back," Sebastian said, sounding
confident.
"No.... I was going back to save him," James said.
"And face Sekhmet alone," Sebastian added.
"She's still badly injured, thanks to you," James responded.
Sebastian sighed. "Be that as it may, it would have been brave but
stupid.... I don't know what I'd do without you...."
"I just.... How can I want him dead on the one hand, but want to
risk my life to save him on the other?" James asked, rolling over and
burying his face in Sebastian's slight shoulder, feeling the cool, hard
muscle rippling beneath.
"You haven't ... what I mean to say is, it's been surprising to me
that we haven't really talked about Peter since he left.... I've had no
idea what you're feeling, James...."
James nodded. "I don't know what I'm feeling.... I've been trying
not to feel.... He was my best friend, and he betrayed me, betrayed us....
It's even worse than with my dad, because dad was messed up, he never
really loved anyone.... But Peter was ... my friend...."
Sebastian squeezed him tight. "James, you love him, and he hurt
you.... I ... can't take that away or make it better.... But I'm glad you
didn't kill him ... even if I might have in your place...."
"Why?"
Sebastian kissed his head and whispered, "Because it reminds me
that what we are doesn't have to destroy us.... You're still the sweet boy
you always were...." And he felt James relax a little in his arms.
Neither of them knew how much time had passed when the door opened
hesitantly and Lt. Spencer stuck his head in. "James? Sir? Consul
Wheeler asked me to come find you.... It seems that the situation is
... developing...."
Sebastian got off the cot and pulled James up, and he held his hand
as they walked out into the hall and down to Christen's office, passing a
few of the young soldiers, who gasped, their eyes wide. James shook his
head, knowing everyone would know who he was in a few minutes.
"Sorry Sebastian," Christen said as they entered. "But we seem to
have a few issues that need your attention...."
"First of all, I think your message has been received loud and
clear," she said, grimly. James looked confused and Sebastian nodded
unhappily to Christen that she should show him the video he had sent to the
Council.
The video showed Sebastian levitating the Korean woman who had
worked for Chang, four wizards were pressing into her with a great force
from each of the four cardinal directions. It soon became clear what they
were doing as Sebastian pronounced her death sentence. "This is the fate
of all who side with the darkness of evil against the interests of humans
and undead alike...." Then he took out a sword and in a quick and furious
blow, bisected the female vampire with a stroke that first connected with
the forehead between her eyes.
The horrible thing was that the force the wizards were exerting
held the two pieces together, and the vampire survived in utter agony.
Then he repeated the action, dividing front from back. Again the wizards
were able to hold her body together in undying agony. The time began to
stretch out and James looked away from the screen. "Turn it off," he
whispered and Sebastian nodded again.
"I'm sorry you had to see that," Sebastian whispered back, and
James melted into him immediately. As horrible as it was, there was no
telling how many lives would be saved because of the fear this video
instilled. James understood that. Coughing, Sebastian asked, "What else,
Christen? Have the others returned?"
"Americ and Avery checked in.... The missions were successful, but
Avery's team took some losses.... The problem is, Pedro hasn't checked in
and Avery went after him, taking anyone who wanted to volunteer. Who knows
what they're charging into?"
"Budapest," Sebastian spit with distaste. "No word at all from
Pedro.... What do the seers say?"
"Their vision is blocked by something powerful," Christen said.
"Sammael," Sebastian murmured.
"Or Aethon.... Of all the vampires Sammael has amassed, he's the
oldest, most powerful and most dangerous," Christen countered.
"Either way.... Avery's already gone?" She nodded. "What about
Musa?"
"No word," Christen replied, shaking her head. Sebastian got an
uneasy feeling, but pushed it aside.
"I'm going to Budapest," he said, finally. Both Christen and James
frowned and he shook his head. "We're going to Budapest.... Get your
troops to suit back up and I'll get mine here. We go in hot and heavy
through a different insertion point...."
After a flurry of activity, everyone was ready to go in about
thirty minutes. Sebastian would lead his team into an alley about a
quarter of a mile to the east of Avery's and Christen would lead hers into
a similar alley a quarter of a mile to the west of Avery's. This, they
hoped, would allow them to discern what the threat and the damage was.
What they stepped into was a war-zone. City block after city block
saw cars burning in the streets, glass blown out of buildings, and stray
energy balls buzzing about willy-nilly. James and Spencer took point,
along with another pair and looked around the corner at the end of their
alley. Bodies were strewn in the streets, some burning, some screaming and
dying, vampire, wizard, and mortal alike. But a cluster of explosions
located ground zero at just near where Pedro's and Avery's teams had come
through. Most of the wild energy balls were originating from there.
Sebastian's team, likewise, began to approach from the opposite side.
Reconnaissance quickly revealed the source of the violence --
Resheph and Sekhmet were in a city park trying to fend off what remained of
Pedro's team and Avery's reinforcements. It became immediately clear what
had happened. Pedro had surprised Resheph, but the Sekhmet had arrived
with backup and turned the tides.
Based on the power behind some of the spells, Avery was out there
somewhere, James figured, and he did something that might be considered
unwise. He conjured a huge blue orb of energy and hit Resheph in the side
with it. Christen's whole team took immediate cover and began casting
spells like their lives depended on it.
"What were you thinking?" Lt. Spencer asked as he sent a lightning
bolt into the chest of a young vampire.
"Avery and his men were pinned down.... I wanted to draw Resheph's
fire, which will allow Sebastian to hit him from behind...."
Spencer smiled. "Good plan," and they kept up their assault.
James's initial strike against Resheph had done little but irritate that
ancient vampire.
"If you need a target," James called loud enough for the enemy to
hear, "hit Sekhmet.... She's injured...."
The enraged Sekhmet now turned her attention their way as well, and
James could sense Sebastian's approach. But before he got too much closer,
Resheph could sense him as well, rounding on the approaching team and
sending a wall of fire their way.
James, in fear and anger, stood and shot a lance of fire laced with
black fury directly into Resheph's back, knocking the creature to its
knees. Then, Avery struck with a powerful vortex which lifted heavy
debris, thrashing the enemy. Surrounded on three sides, even Resheph and
Sekhmet were outmatched and it was only a matter of time, so they turned
and ran, taking a few more strikes in the back until they turned a corner
and ... of course, were gone.
James ran toward the smoky area where he expected to find Avery and
found himself standing in ... an indescribable wasteland. Wizards lay
moaning at his feet, and the streets were full of blood. Avery himself had
fallen to his knees, but James was confused as Avery didn't look like he
had suffered significant injuries. And then he saw, to Avery's right, a
familiar face.
He looked a lot like Avery. They'd always favored one another
since they were boys. Pedro was bleeding from his mouth, a gaping hole in
his chest. There would be no repairing it. Pedro grasped at Avery's
forearm and squeezed tight. "I love you, brother," the man wheezed, his
last words dying in the smoky air.
James looked away, tears burning in his eyes, and Sebastian blurred
past him, motioning for Sam to help Avery and collecting Pedro's body
himself, leading them back to the manor. Moments later he returned for and
asked James to instruct everyone to return to base and wait for word.
James passed that along to Sebastian's men and returned to Christen's with
her soldiers, giving Sebastian time to deal with Avery alone.
James joined the soldiers in the mess hall for dinner but he sat
quietly, withdrawn despite all the anxious attempts to get him to open up
about Sebastian, Avery, Sam and the others. Since they had seen Sebastian
holding his hand, everyone assumed the truth, but he didn't feel like
talking.
Lt. Spencer finished up and returned his and James's trays,
returning and suggesting, "Let's take a walk, James...."
James nodded and followed him out onto the dark grounds. They
walked around the lake for a while silently. At last James spoke. "Avery
... mastered time to hold off his death.... When he couldn't do the same
for his brother, he found a vampire to turn him.... They've seen five
centuries together.... I can't imagine...."
"For us, the Salazars are legend, and of course Sebastian.... It's
so strange to ... well, to you they're ... people," Spencer said.
James nodded. "After all I've seen them do, Sebastian is just the
boy I love at the end of the day.... Avery is the battered and nearly
broken man I saw return from Ashaer.... There are others.... The cutest
little blond, the most powerful person I've ever met, and he's just a sweet
boy...."
Spencer's eyes widened. "Most powerful person you've met? Says
the High Consul's boyfriend?"
James smiled. "I've said too much.... But I trust you not to say
anything.... Christen's met him too...."
"What is he, a wizard like us, or a vampire?"
"So much more," James smiled. "You'll see, one day...."
Spencer walked on with him, again falling silent for a long time.
"Do you think.... Well, I'm just wondering, do you think Sebastian has any
openings?"
James looked at him closely and shrugged. "I'll ask.... I'd like
that, though," James smiled sincerely. The young lieutenant would be a
good friend, and someone he could trust to watch his back. They walked
back to the barracks and took empty cots, quickly falling into deep sleep,
the day's events having taken a great toll.
Avery was pacing back and forth manically in Sebastian's office.
"I'm going to kill them all," he muttered to himself, tears streaking his
cheeks.
"Avery, please sit down," Sebastian said.
"I can't, I can't stop moving or I'll lose it," Avery said. "I
can't stop.... I'm going after them...."
"Avery! Listen to yourself! You can go after them now and get
yourself killed," Sebastian answered him, "or you can wait and we can get
this right and kill them all...."
Avery stopped and collapsed into a seat, face in his hands. "He's
gone," the man wept openly. "He's gone, Sebastian.... I'll never see him
again...."
Sebastian knelt at his feet and wrapped his arms around the man.
"I'm so sorry, I know what he meant to you.... I remember how hard you
tried to get me to turn him...."
Avery laughed at the flood of memory, inhaling deeply of
Sebastian's familiar scent. "You know who it was, don't you?"
"I guessed, a couple of hundred years ago, that it might be Musa,"
Sebastian said softly.
"How did you know?" Avery asked.
"For a couple of hundred years, Pedro blushed whenever he was
around, or at the mention of his name.... I'm guessing he enjoyed his
breaking-in period with his sire pretty well...."
"You know Musa," Avery said with a wink, and Sebastian smiled back
nodding.
"Why don't you go talk to Sarah? If you need anything, you know
where I am...." Avery nodded and trudged off, careful to look away from
the table on which his brother's body lay.
Meanwhile, Sebastian picked up the phone and called a contact in
the NSA to see if they could get a satellite image of the ship Musa's team
had boarded. It would be a long night, and he only wished James were with
him. But he knew why the boy hadn't returned. God, how he loved James.
But the thought of Avery upstairs kept drawing him back to the
depths. Pedro wasn't the last friend this campaign would cost him, and in
a world where relationships lasted centuries, loss was that much more
acute.
Sammael had been in a rage as report after report came in of
compromised safe house and destroyed assets. So many of his followers were
dead, Resheph injured, Sekhmet injured. But she'd told him something
interesting, and now he found himself next to Peter.
"Peter, you betrayed your friends coming to me.... You've killed
in cold blood to prove your loyalty.... I need one more thing from you,"
Sammael said, running a hand down the boy's bare back.
"What?" Peter asked, shivering at the touch of the cold hand. He
hated everything Sammael stood for – and considered it a cruel irony
that HE was using the devil – but the feeling of Sammael's skin against
his threatened to silence that inner voice.
"I need to know, does Sebastian have any weaknesses I can use to
destabilize him?" Sammael asked.
Peter tensed up momentarily, but moaned as Sammael's hand slipped
beneath the sheet draped casually across Peter's waist. "If you want to
get to Sebastian, there is ONLY one way.... James...."
"James," Sammael mused. "The boyfriend...."
"So much more than that," Peter said. "Soul mates, true loves...."
Even as he said it, he remembered how much he hated himself too – his
weakness, his pain, his desire...
"Now," Sammael said, punctuating his words with an evil smile, "you
really HAVE betrayed them...." He pushed Peter back onto the bed playfully
and rolled on top of him; totally unlike he was with Andrew, he was
dominant but gentle, and as he kissed the boy's neck, Peter forgot all
about loathing and let himself drift away.